


Cinnamon Girl

by lilacnightmares



Category: Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
Genre: Anxiety, Comfort, Demon/Human Relationships, F/M, First Dance, First Love, Fluff, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Homesickness, Lesson 8 Spoilers, Mutual Pining, Pact Marks, Teasing, Unresolved Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:21:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,195
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23381596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilacnightmares/pseuds/lilacnightmares
Summary: It's hard being a human in a world of Devils and Demons. Azalea does her best, that's all she can do, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't wear on her like a ton of bricks. It's the moments after and before the storms of reality that really let her ground herself and feel like she's not just meddling or doing too much. It's just a dance, right? Well, all she can think about is Mammon.Spoilers for Lesson 8.
Relationships: Mammon (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 61





	Cinnamon Girl

Azalea felt a little out of place. 

Okay, saying that it was a _little_ wasn’t perfect for the situation. She never minded being in a space with other people and she could have boundless energy when she was with the right people but this wasn’t like it was back home in the human world where she understood all of the rules and the way that things worked. 

This was Devildom, an entirely different plane of existence, and nothing here was anything like what she was accustomed to. 

Oh, no way, and _no how_. 

It was nothing like back home, where she could gauge people and guess the situation. Azalea tended to speak without thinking it through, and that had landed her into more than enough trouble already. It was a little concern that she may make a blunder again. 

The only reason that she felt like she wasn’t making a total fool of herself was the fact that some of the Demon brothers had reassured her woes here and there. Well, reassured was a bold way to put, it was more like pity, Azalea assumed. 

If somebody looked like a wet puppy outside of your screendoor, were you the kind of person to turn your head to them and shut your front door, or were you the kind of person that stepped to the side and comforted the pitiful thing?

She sure sometimes felt like that when the boys coddled her or grimaced when she hurt herself. 

Now, that was something that hadn’t changed, human world or not. Everyone winced when she walked into a room and fell flat on her face. Never let it be said that she was the most poised or the most graceful person who ever lived. 

Getting into trouble? 

That just seemed to have Azalea’s name written all over it. 

Perhaps, that was why she was a bit unsure of herself tonight. After winding smack-dab in the middle of their family drama and worming her way into the situation because God, Azalea never knew when to leave well enough alone and when people were in trouble she ran in without even second thinking the thought over, there was more than enough thoughts on her mind. 

It just seemed to be a curse that came along with being an empath. 

That added to the notion that she could easily slip up and say the wrong thing to someone? It had already happened a couple of times with the brothers and fortunately, they were understanding after their anger wore down. 

These other demons, though? They wouldn’t be the same and were by no means the same as the men she had come to known. Oh, boy, that anxiety was lingering in the back of her head. Even though she was a bit awkward, Azalea felt like she more than made up for the situation by looking her best. 

Her confidence could always get a boost when she was dressed up. 

Never doubt the righteous fury of a designer with crunch time, she got even the smallest hint of an excuse to make an outfit, and she damn well took it and ran as fast as she could. She was pretty sure that Asmo was convinced that she was off-her-rocker now, but like, in a good way. 

It paid off, though. 

A nice sleek red dress that hung in just the right way against her lithe form, clinging tightly to her bodice and them ballooning out around her knees to make a flowy mermaid cut, a high turtle-collar around her throat with a peekaboo front line that showed just enough but not quite enough to give anyone a hint of anything. 

That styled with her hair neatly tucked into a bun on one side, and the rest of it cascading over her shoulders to cover up some of the sheer backings. 

The one thing that one couldn’t even manage to hide from prying eyes would be the smallest hint of the pact mark peeking out from underneath the collar of her dress. 

That would be Mammon's, as he was guilty of wanting there to be a constant sign of their union, and the rest that she had at the moment was more discrete, tucked away. There were a few of those hidden on her body now. It was supposed to ward off anyone from thinking anything stupid. The benefits of getting involved with Demons, right? 

She wasn’t going out of her way to keep those from prying eyes but the thought of them danced in and out every so often when she felt glares on her back. At least her outfit was a stark contrast to the normal dark tones and seas of deep blue that she normally wore. 

She was often clad in leather, studs, chic urban tones that countered against her soft features. It gave her an element of edge and it helped others think twice about not respecting her more. But, tonight, she was showing more of her soft side. 

It drew more attention, that was for sure. 

Azalea didn’t care if the eyes were on her because if people saw her clothes then the point was made. She may have been a human but she did have some talent and merit to speak of! She wasn’t just some clumsy oaf with purple locks and blue eyes! 

She was a _talented_ clumsy oaf with purple locks and blue eyes!

The party had already started and everyone had taken to the floor well, apart from her and a few of the others that stayed back. Then, she heard the sound of someone calling her name. Azalea glanced over her shoulder to see the two Angels together, as per usual, Simeon leading the way and Luke not all that far from his heels. 

Luke glanced around the room at all of the Demons, and then looking back at Azalea with feathered brows, “I hope those monsters haven’t made it too hard on you, Azalea. I don’t feel comfortable as an Angel but I can’t imagine what it’s like for you as a human.” 

Her smile was reassuring, and she couldn’t help but brush her fingers against the top of his head, “Oh, of course not, Luke. You’d be the first to know if something was amiss.” 

His cheeks puffed out as if he were annoyed by this action by the small dusting of pink on his cheeks said otherwise. Luke huffed, “Well, I’d hope so! It’s Angel’s job to look out for humans like you in duress!”

“I appreciate your concern, Luke.” she beamed, glancing over at Simeon to offer him a few of her condolences. She knew that not everybody had the energy to put up with Luke. She felt the same way about herself at times. She could talk and talk without even realizing that other people were bothered or if she was making a fool of herself. 

They exchanged some pleasantries here and there for a moment. 

She hugged her arms close to herself and smiled, it was always a delight and grounding to have their energy instead of the Demon brothers. 

It wasn’t as quite chaotic, Luke’s constant chattering about staying safe amongst those Devils was a bit frenzied but it simply reminded her of her little brother. They had similar energy, even if one of them was a few hundred or thousand years old. She still wasn’t sure about that. 

They were always looking out for others but never quite coming out and saying that they were doing it because they were embarrassed. 

Thinking about her brother made her feel just a little homesick. 

Well, not homesick, per se. She didn’t care if she ever saw her parents again in her life but she did miss her little brother. Her home was wherever that kid was, and she hoped that he was having an easier time getting by in school then he had been before she disappeared out of the blue. 

She wouldn’t let the others know that, though. 

The entire exchange program was important to everyone and she wasn’t going to be the reason that it had any kinks in it. Sure, she had slipped up a few times thus far but those blunders had only been because she was trying to make things right. 

A fatal trait, but a good one when applied right. 

The thoughts of her brother just something that flickered in and out of her mind now and again when something reminded her of him. 

Family wasn’t exactly important but certain bonds were, and she had made her brother a promise that she would protect him from his bullies starting this year and since she was in Devildom, she couldn’t exactly keep that promise now. 

How could she protect him if she was stuck in Devildom? 

If anyone noticed, Azalea wasn’t sure. 

It didn’t seem like they did. 

They might have been more hung up on the fact that she spent more time getting involved in their trouble and getting hurt on the daily because she was just so clumsy. 

Even so! Tonight wasn’t about that sort of thing, it was about celebrating the progress that they had made thus far and how far they would go in the future. 

Leaving her thoughts to where they belonged, she smiled at the two Angels. “You two go on and enjoy yourselves,” she said with a laugh. “Don’t feel a need to babysit me on any account. I can handle myself most of the time. You’d know if that wasn’t the case.”

“You as well, Azalea,” Simeon said, a glimmer in his eyes that seemed rather mischievous as he tugged on Luke’s arm to get him to follow after him. “Don’t do anything that I wouldn’t do, alright? Luke might have a heart attack.”

“He means stay away from the Demons as much as possible! You know where to find us! Just scream if you need help, we aren’t far,” Luke added before he was willfully dragged to another section of the party, that is. 

Those two wouldn’t get all that far away from each other tonight, or probably ever, not if Luke had anything to say about it. 

“Jeez… those two,” Azalea raised her hand to her lips to stifle the amused laughter that escaped from her lips. “Can’t deny that it’s sweet, though.”

Luke might have spent time acting like he was a little guard dog, but his concern was out of a good place, even if it could be as yippy as a puppy at times. Simeon had his work cut out for him, that was for damn sure. 

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and noticed a familiar figure in the corner of her vision that seemed important. She looked to her right side, nearly grinning ear to ear when she realized that it was Mammon. Mammon! Now, where in the world did he come from?

For someone that spent a lot of time around her these days—

He had been strangely far from her side today. 

What was up with that?

She made no point of hiding that thought, turning to face him with narrowed brows, “Where’ve you been, Mammie? I was startin’ to think you thought I had the plague or something, I haven’t seen you all day! What’s up with that, huh?” 

Mammon had that deer in the headlights expression cross his features. He had been caught like a mouse in a trap, and he knew it. Mammon cleared his throat and trailed off for a moment in a few nonsensical mumbles that made no sense. 

Perhaps his brain was scattered after they had pummeled his brain in with pillows? Maybe? Right? It did go on for a while. Mammon certainly seemed alright on the outside, as far as she could tell anyway, and she knew when somebody wasn’t okay.

She was an expert on not being okay, after all! 

He was shifted into his demon form. Well, all of the brothers were in their demon forms tonight. It was a stance of power, of course, she assumed. There was a system of hierarchy in Devildom and people had to respect that. It seemed silly to Azalea but she wasn’t one to judge. It was kind of an excuse to get a good look at Mammon without his features covered. 

Azalea liked his eyes. 

They were always just out of her reach and hidden. So, when she got to see him without them, it made her heart flutter for some reason. 

There were a lot more things that weren’t covered up when he shifted but she always felt herself more drawn to his eyes than the rest of his body. Asmo would taunt and tease her for such but she didn’t care. No matter how much she liked seeing him like this! He was undeniably in a lot of trouble for avoiding speaking with her all day! 

She rested a hand against her hip and leaned upon the tip of her toes to stare up at him, “Huuh? What was that? I didn’t hear ya! What’s up, Mammie? Spit it out.” 

He rubbed the back of his neck and beat around the bush for a moment. “Azalea, um, hey... like… you know, uh…. what I mean to say is… Listen, like, y-you’ve gotta have some weird tastes to ask a human like you to dance, right?” Mammon laughed a bit, the nervous chuckle in his throat seemingly out of place. 

Azalea stared at him. 

Why was he dancing around whatever he wanted to ask? If he was waiting for her to get the hint, she wasn’t getting it today. 

Mammon noticed that, but he just kept talking, “I’m guessin’ no one here’s gonna do that, huh? Hahaha! So y’know, as long as you don’t have a partner, I guess I could maybe go ahead and pair up with you for a bit?” he trailed, gaze lingering on her own. 

He wanted to hang out with her, right? Azalea figured that was what he was asking but she was still a little caught up in looking at him. Since he wasn’t wearing his sunglasses tonight and that also meant that he couldn’t hide the blush that was spreading across his face. Azalea liked seeing that side of him. 

He might have had an attitude but she saw underneath that. He was secretly a big softie. It was kind of cute to see him all worked up over something but why was he so worked up tonight, anyway? 

They were close friends, right? 

That meant that he shouldn’t have been so nervous about speaking to her at all. He knew that he could tell her anything, right? 

Azalea blinked, detaching herself from his steely gaze after she had found that she had just been staring at him like an idiot for the past minute with her lips slightly agape and apart. She opened her mouth to say something but Satan cut in, “Mammon, why don’t you just go and admit that you want to dance with Azalea?”

He wanted to… dance with her? That’s what he was so nervous about? Azalea’s eyes quickly bounced from Mammon and Satan. 

“Um…?” 

Leviathan wasn’t far behind him. 

He appeared from the side and laughed at his brother’s expense and mortification, trying to hold it back as he clutched at his shirt tightly, and snickered, “You’re such a loser, Mammon! A total tsundere too! Lol! People are sick of characters like that, didn’t you hear?! Didn’t you get the memo? Those characters are _so_ yesterday!”

Mammon growled, clearly fed up with their teasing. 

Great, they were back at it again with that routine. She had told every single one of these boys to stop treating Mammon like a punching bag. They all made mistakes and struggled with their sins but he was the only one that got any flack! That wasn’t fair to him. 

She frowned, opening her mouth to try and scold them, “Guys… c’mon, we talked about this a hundred times already… you know how I feel about it when you’re mean to others like that when you’ve got no reason to be. Don’t tea—” 

“Get outta here, the both of ya’! Shoo! Shoo! I didn’t ask for opinions!!” Mammon’s voice drowned hers out as soon as it left his throat, though it always did when he was irritated. Mammon’s going to have the record for that if he ever tries to win a shouting match. 

She grimaced. 

Well, that certainly wasn’t how she expected her night to be going but hey, it could have always been way worse! 

“Azalea, come dance with me. Now.” A stern voice from behind. Azalea turned around to make eye contact with Lucifer who had appeared rather quickly and unexpectedly.

She hadn't thought that she would be seeing too terribly much of him tonight, given he would have spent more time focused on the tasks that Diavolo gave him. Still, she offered him a smile and nodded her head, as a courteous remark.

She took his outstretched hand, “Of course.” 

“See? You should’ve just come out and asked Azalea for a dance, Mammon,” Satan sighed, shaking his head at the scene. How very to be expected of Lucifer, of course, he would swing in before anyone else could take the chance from him. 

Typical. 

Well, Satan would have his chance in due time. It didn’t matter who went first in line, what mattered was the one that captivated her the longest. That didn’t mean that he and Levi weren’t going to laugh at Mammon for making a fool of himself. 

That utter buffoon never took a hint and that’s what he deserved. 

Levithan snorted, “The loser was straight-up rejected. Haha, awesome! I think that's a new record! Lol!”

“Shut up, you two!” he barked. Mammon glowered at both of them for a moment. He was getting tired of everybody getting in his way. He was her first man and that meant that he had all the rights to take the first dance! 

Mammon’s gaze lingered on Azalea for the longest time, however, as she disappeared into the crowd with Lucifer at her side.

She spared him a small apologetic look that he couldn't help but accept without hesitation. 

It was the least she could do after running off with Lucifer. He knew that she would have rather been around him anyway! He shoved those feelings aside, huffed, and left his brothers before they could smother him with their negative feedback. 

* * *

Lucifer, even out of his Demon form, was an all imposing and prideful man that held an air about him that nobody dared to ever disrespect. 

If you were to look at him now, powered up and charged with energy? The energy that he radiated at the moment may have been calm but that did not mean that it was a warm feeling it gave out.

It was… uneasy. 

He knew how to play the field, and there was no denying that he had always been a man that thought highly of himself. Sheer power was easy for him and she could even feel that from the hand that rested against her hip. 

Something about him has always left Azalea floundering for words. 

He thinks and can rationalize his thoughts concisely before he speaks them into reality. She has never been able to do it ever, to do that without worry, she means. She thinks with her heart and with not her brain. She says what she feels but sometimes that means that she has said too much. 

They often have butted heads because of this and she has stood strong in her opinions while he makes no matter of hiding his irritation. Things were rather civil but there was always this air that seemed to say: _I’m waiting for you to mess up so I can fix it._

“Do you know how to dance?” he asked, tone unreadable. 

Huh? 

Oh, right. 

They’re on the dance floor together right now and Lucifer has stopped in his tracks, turning to look down at the purple-haired woman. Azalea had been caught up in staring at somebody again, though this time for far different reasons than how she acted around Mammon, but she slowly nodded her head in confirmation.

“...Yes, but I’m not the best at it. Guilty of the whole two left feet thing, y’know?” she replied, “Though, you probably could have guessed that.” 

“That’s fine, I’ll lead,” he commented. Lucifer took the first steps and she took the second, and vice versa. ”You know, in general, there are all sorts of reasons why one might ask someone else to dance. For example, they might be interested in them, they might want to touch them, or they might simply be doing it out of politeness.”

“That makes sense,” Azalea agreed with him. “Although I assume there’s more than simply just that, Lucifer. It’s unlike you to seek me out like this.” 

There was a chuckle that left his throat. It wasn’t the kind that was humoring her expression, nor did it have much joy in it. “Is that so?” 

As wary as she felt of this man, Lucifer was truly divine on the dance floor. He knew how to captivate an audience and there was no doubt that he had once been the golden boy of the Celestial Realm. She had some trouble picturing any of the boys as Angels, but they had indeed been that way once upon a time. 

He had a sense of rhythm. 

At least he had that going for him, right? 

Azalea almost felt dizzy from the intensity of his gaze upon her as they swayed against the ballroom floor, twisting and turning to the melody of the song. His intentions were what she was focused more on right now. 

“Well, you would be right about that, some people choose to offer their hand for a chance to have a private conversation,” Lucifer said. His tone grew more bitter and sharpened as he reached the end of that sentence. Those eyes of his were trained on her like a knife, and she could do nothing but be at his mercy. 

What does he want? 

The grip of his hand tightens, and his voice crawls so low that only she could be able to hear the hiss from his throat, “What is it you’re planning with Asmo?” he demanded. 

“...!” 

Azalea can see the unease and the glimmer of fear that flashes across her face in the reflection of his steely eyes. She knows that she needs to keep her cool and that she needs to watch what she says around him. 

Lucifer knows how to read people and he knows when to gauge if someone is telling the truth to him or not. She’s not done anything wrong and he can’t prove that she has any malicious intentions, because Azalea _doesn’t_. 

But, Lucifer doesn’t know that, or he doesn’t believe it for a damn minute. She’s stunned and takes a moment to look away from his prying eyes. He continues to watch her and tries to find himself an answer in that gesture. 

Azalea knows that his eyes are lingering on the pact mark. 

He’s referring to her intentions to make pacts with every single one of his brothers. Of course, anyone would be wary of a human coming in and doing such a thing. But, his feelings on the matter were rather dangerous, as she could feel the smallest hum of killer intent. 

Lucifer didn’t make mistakes and he didn’t let mistakes happen. The reality of who he was and what he could do became very real at times like this. Of what all of the brothers could be capable of it if it came down to it. 

He leaned over just enough so that she couldn’t escape the sound of his voice, “Let me make one thing clear with you, _human_. I respect my brothers’ freedom to do as they wish to do with their lives. However, if I ever sense that you’ve become a threat to either Diavolo or us, even the smallest feeling that you’ve got bad intentions with anyone… then I’ll show you absolutely no mercy whatsoever. Understood?” 

Azalea’s entire body tensed. She tried to swallow the feelings of dread just as soon as they began to arise but she was horrid at that. 

She looked back at him, as her brain was weighing the feeling of fear and the feeling of disgust all at once. A part of her knew that she should just shut up, and nod her head, but the rest of her hated that he would even imply that she would even dare to hurt one of them. 

She almost didn’t even feel the tightened grip on her hand anymore. No, what she felt was the feeling that she was about to say something that she might regret. 

She couldn’t tell him off, that was a death wish. But, Azalea had gotten damn close to doing that a few times now for the way that he treated Mammon, even if he earned his licks, there was no excuse for that level of punishment. 

Her perspective of the world was far softer and more gentle than his. Azalea had potential in every living thing, and she never dared think the worst of someone unless their true colors proved them to be wrong. 

Lucifer had hardened himself for a reason, she understood that much. Yet, even as she gazed into his eyes, she was searching for a trace within them that held compassion. When he spoke of protecting his brothers, his family, his livelihood… she could see that he genuinely meant those words, to what extent, she wasn’t sure. 

He would have taken down anyone that hurt his family. 

For a moment, she respected him.

If someone had even dared to imply harm towards her brother, then she would have given them no mercy either, so from that point of view, she understood his concern. Yet, she had done nothing to show that she was a bad person. 

All she had done was to try to make friends with everyone.

She wanted everyone to get along and to get to a place where they could be together and not feel some tension or dread between them all that was building in the background. She was the one that took the offer from Belphagor without even blinking or flinching. 

Azalea wasn’t doing it for him solely, no, she had decided the moment that she noticed that there was trouble in this family, well before she had encountered the youngest brother, that she was going to try and mend it the best that she could. 

It just turned out that the problem was slightly bigger than it had appeared to be. 

They needed to work out what had gone wrong, but even she still wasn’t sure which path was right to take. What was she supposed to do to prove her feelings to this man? Especially when every moment she spent with him made her want to rip her hair out of her skull. 

Azalea bit down every single urge that had started to bite at her heels. She took in a breath and looked at him with renewed determination. “I’m not plotting anything, Lucifer. I just want to be friends with everyone. That’s it. That’s what I’ve said from the start and it’s all that I want. What’s so wrong with that?”

Lucifer just stared at her expression, searching, hunting, trying to find a lie in that sentence that would prove his theory. He would find nothing, but that didn’t mean that his feelings of mistrust were going to leave him. 

“Why do I have trouble believing that…?” he murmured, voice acidic. 

“I...” She trailed off but stopped short. 

Azalea didn’t know what else to say to him to prove that she was sincere. But, from the firm set of his brow and how vicious he became, she knew that she had to try even harder to fix the mess that existed between this family. If only to show Lucifer that he should respect her instead of treating her like some nuisance. 

But, what was she supposed to do to amount to that?

That couldn’t happen when she could feel her heart in her throat and her anxiety growing. The dance had stopped, and now they were just in a standoff. If she thought that had made any progress thus far, tonight had seemingly reminded her that the road she was on still had a long way to go before she could reach the end. 

They were at odds, once again, but Lucifer held all the pieces to the puzzle. 

Azalea was transfixed and didn’t realize how fast her blood had begun to pump until she could feel it in her ears. This was real, and he had every intention of backing up his threats. He wouldn’t say a single thing that he didn’t intend to make a promise and keep. 

And they remained locked in that momentary realization until the world began to spin again and a voice spoke up from silence that had once enveloped the both of them. “...Pardon me. It looks like a new song has started. I’d love the chance to dance with Azalea. Might I cut in, Lucifer?” 

Azalea turned her head to see Solomon standing there. There was a glint in his eyes that was akin to curiosity. Man, was she glad that somebody had stepped in because she wasn’t sure what would have happened if they kept discussing this right now. 

Lucifer’s hand left her one as she was passed off to the other human, “Fine. I get the feeling that you’ve gotten the message and that you understand what I’ve told you, Azalea. I’m _so_ glad we got to have this little talk.” 

He disappeared into the sea of people not even a second later and that’s when Azalea finally allowed herself to breathe. 

Her lungs burned like she hadn’t been able to get a good breath in. Had she forgotten? That didn’t matter so much to her, what mattered was how close she can to facing real danger again, not the everyday danger, the real kind that could get you hurt. 

She tried to shift her focus fast, turning to Solomon, “Thanks for that, Solomon. I thought I was going to have to find my way out. Though I suppose you were curious about that, otherwise you wouldn’t have approached me in the first place, right?”

Solomon’s shifty gaze seemed more amused that she had caught onto his little game. Normally, these things went over her head, tonight was just one of those nights where she was aware of the world around her. Naturally, if someone was trying to weasel information out of her it wasn’t that hard but she had to be way more cautious then usual. 

He chuckled, “Heh. Well, you looked pale as well. Can’t blame the curiosity, can we? What exactly did he say to you?” 

Azalea toyed with the thought but pushed it away as quickly as it came to life.

It was better to keep this to herself. 

“It was nothing important, honestly,” she told him, simply with a smile. “Just discussing some private business between the two of us, nothing more, nothing less. Lucifer is just intense, sometimes, it takes some getting used to. I’m still learning.”

“ _Intriguing_.”

* * *

“I figured I’d find ya’ out here.”

“Mammon?” 

“Who the heck else would be out lookin’ for ya’? The guys hadn’t seen you in a while so I, the great and courteous Mammon, offered to go and look around.” 

“...You left before they even formulated a plan, didn’t ya’, Mammie?”

“I ain’t gonna confirm shit. Don’t look at me like that! I’m the one responsible for takin’ care of ya’ in the first place, so it’s my job to be with you.” 

Azalea couldn’t stop the laughter that came after that comment. She raised her hands to her lips quiet some of the noise but she couldn’t hold back her giggles. She had stepped out of the castle just to catch her breath for a few minutes and found herself on a balcony alcove looking up at the sky. 

It was a lot darker here in Devildom then it was back in the human world. It didn’t matter if it was day or night time, the light that was out was nothing compared to the warmth of the sun. She missed that, but the moon was just as lovely as it had ever been. 

Some things may have changed a bit since she got here but that didn’t mean that they weren’t the same in some ways. Funny, how that worked. She rested her elbows on the edge and turned her attention back to the sky after Mammon went quiet. 

“Well,” she said, quietly. “Thank you for being concerned for me. But, I’m okay. I promise. You should head back into the party, Mammon, I’ll be back in a few minutes. I wouldn’t wanna spoil your evenin’ since I just wanted to take a breather.”

Mammon took a spot next to her as stared up at the same moon that she was seeing. Footsteps against the pavement echoed throughout the quiet. The only sound was the small echo of the lingering music that came from the dance hall.

He scoffed, “And leave you abandoned so one of the others can come and bother ya’ like that? No way human,! Consider me the only thing keepin’ you from getting a headache right now. Can you imagine how irritatin’ it would be if one of my brothers had come along? They’d probably be talkin’ your ear off and you wouldn’t be able to get a word in edgewise.”

There was the smallest curve of her lips when he said those words, “Sort of like right now then, huh, Mammie?” she teased him. 

“There’s a difference between them and me!” Mammon countered.

“Oh, really?” she asked. “What’s that, then?” 

He was nearly offended that she didn’t already know the answer to his statement. “I’m the great Mammon, _they’re not_!” 

“Hahahaha!” 

He turned his head to look over at Azalea. 

She was looking at everything but him at that moment but for some reason, he didn’t feel as though she had to stare at him to hold his attention. Her eyes lingered on the skyline. She was always looking at everything here in Devildom as if she were looking to make it last in her memories. 

Mammon had heard her say once that she was looking for inspiration. When she was drawing or creating something, she liked to draw from her environment. 

Well, what he really wondered what the hell she was looking for or if she even knew what she wanted from doing that. Azalea never seemed to know whatever it was that she liked. Her opinion was always changing. He wouldn’t say that he got it or understood it. 

What he did know was that when she finally found something, her eyes would light up like a really bright star and that bumbling smile that always appeared on her face would grow even wider.

She would stop whatever she was doing and immediately start writing down notes or start doodling something. 

Whenever she was stressed out or talked herself into a frenzy that nobody could keep up with, she would drop back from the situation briefly and start doing stuff like this. It was odd to see the little chatterbox grow silent, but, in retrospect, Mammon kind of liked moments like that. It gave him a chance to appreciate Azalea. 

It wasn’t hard to figure out what was going on in that mind of hers. She was honest, a little too honest with others. Yet, there were plenty of things that Mammon was still discovering every single day about his human. 

Mammon sighed, “Besides, I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if you wound up getting hurt on a count of my negligence.” 

Azalea made a little _“aw!”_ sound to which Mammon looked away from her so that she wouldn’t be able to see the look on his face. 

“I know you’re a big softie. You don’t have to hide that. Mammon, I’m a walking disaster, you know that. I’ve always been getting hurt and I have never gone a day without getting involved in some kind of trouble. I know you guys think I’m gonna crack my head open if you leave me alone for longer then a couple of minutes, but I swear that won’t happen.” 

“Yeah, well, that’s what you said last week, but ya’ almost broke a few bones when I turned my head for a minute! A thing! Ya’ know, humans are very fragile compared to us, consider yourself lucky that I wanna keep an eye on ya!” he said. 

Mammon had seen her come very close to losing her life numerous times. It had started to affect him as of late. It had been more of a notion of the trouble that he would get into if she got hurt at him, but when she genuinely reached out to him for help time and time again, that’s when his opinion started to change. 

It was a strange... fondness that he hadn’t felt for another person. 

He couldn’t explain it. All that he knew for certain was that he wanted to be around her all the time. He wanted to be some person, some demon, that she could count on. He didn’t want any of the others to think that they could do that. 

She had always reached out to him. 

Not them, _him_.

Call him selfish, call him greedy, call him whatever you want to. But that meant nothing when you weighed the facts on the table. She had chosen him time and time again, not cause he asked, not cause he wanted it. 

Azalea did what she wanted. 

And he had never seen another person with that much fondness in their heart. It had been centuries since someone like that had been around. If he thought that Lilith had been a warm person back then, he would have been more surprised to learn that there was somebody that shined just as bright, if not brighter. 

It was a clumsy human girl who was always covered in bandaids, of all things in the universe that made him crave something different. 

This strange girl that since day one had been calling out everybody for treating him the way that they did, it didn’t matter if it was Lucifer, or somebody else, she stood her ground and defended him, no matter if he was in the room or not. 

Mammon had never had somebody like that care so damn hard about him. 

Perhaps that was part of the reason why he felt so greedy for her company, to be around her all the time, just so that he knew what it felt like to be… 

There was the sound of her laughter again in his ears. He felt her hand brush across the top of his, and that caused him to look back at Azalea. She was illuminated thanks to the moon’s light. He noted that this was the first night that he had ever seen her face not adorned with goofy bandaids. Her smile was tiny but sincere. There was a softness in her blue eyes that he couldn’t quite recognize. 

It took his breath away. 

Mammon couldn’t stop the little gasp that escaped him. 

“How’s about I give the great Mammon that dance he wanted so badly earlier, huh? Since you went out of your way to come and find me?” she suddenly spoke, breaking the illusion that had been built. It sent warmth all over his body, but mostly his face. He could even feel the steam rising from his ears just thinking about that. 

He laughed, trying to hide the nervous feeling that had begun to rise. “Of course! I knew you were saving the best for last, right? You just wanted the great Mammon to be your last guy for one night, right? That way you could think about me all night!”

“You’re _always_ my first choice, Mammon,” Azalea corrected him. She lifted her free hand to move her hair from her shoulder to reveal the pact mark that was peaking through the edge of her neckline underneath her dress. “Remember? You’re the first one that got to make a pact with me. I never forget that fact.” 

Oh, seeing even the smallest peak of his mark on her skin was enough to drive him up a wall. He wished that she would show it off more, that she would never cover it up so that he could see it, and so that everyone could see it. Normally, he would complain and scold her for daring to hide something so important. 

But, seeing her so openly address it and reach out to him before he can ever say something? Oh, now that’s a boost of pride. 

Mammon was greedy for more. 

Some things never change. 

“You’re damn right about that! I’m your first so don’t you ever forget it,” He said. “And ya’ better stopping hiding that you’re mine from everyone! I told ya’ not to hide my mark a hundred times, no, a million times!”

It was enough of a boost for him to put aside those fluffy feelings and replace them with the feeling of urgency, need, and pleasure. Mammon took her hand in his own and unashamedly pulled her close to him. 

Azalea let out just the tiniest little squeal of surprise.

She didn’t push back though, she settled into his arms. She looked up at him. She didn’t seem to be bothered by this. He was guilty of being very truly touchy-feely when he got into moods like one. It wasn’t all that uncommon to see him throw his arms around her or tug her just close enough that she was only touching him. 

They stayed like that for the longest moment, just swaying back and forth against one another without the intrusion of others. 

“Alright,” she said, simply. 

“Alright?” he echoed her words. “Ya’ gotta be more specific than that, human! What is it you’re going to work on?”

Azalea looked at him with those vibrant blue eyes, and blurted out, “I’ll try to work on making sure everybody can see how important you are to me, Mammie. I know you’re hungry for affection. Lucky for you, I wanna smother you in it.”

Her cheeks turned red almost instantaneously. She babbled for a moment as she tried to come up with some kind of an excuse to hide what she had said but it was clear that she had stepped a little too close to the edge. 

Mammon leaned over and brushed his lips against the top of her head. “ _Those are dangerous, words, Azalea. Say anymore and I won’t be able to let you go._ ”


End file.
